Charge cells are used inter alia as electrical charge integrators or electrical reference units, for example when measuring time or electrical charges. Electrical charge units, can, for example, be used in electricity meters for determining the value ##EQU1## where I represents the transfer current of a charge cell.
Electric charge cells, which operate according to the Faraday principle, and serve to measure electrical charge quantities (Coulomb) are known. Charge cells of this type consist as a rule of two metallic electrodes, for example of silver or mercury, which are separated from one another by an electrolytic solution. An electrical current passing through the cell transfers metal ions from one electrode to the other, and deposits them there. This process is reversable, so that a reversal of the direction of the current permits resetting of the cell to the initial state.
Electrolytic charge cells of this type have various disadvantages, such as inability to be integrated in so-called integrated semiconductor circuits, sensitivity with respect to mechanical impacts and/or vibration, limited life, temperature dependency of the ion concentration and, when used over a long time, for example, over a period of 10 years, unpredictable changes in the ion concentration and/or chemical reaction of the electrolytic solution with the housing.